Resistance & Outcasts

The Conference of the French and Italian Graduate Student Association at the Ohio State University is an opportunity to converse about research regarding current questions and debate important to the French and Italian academic worlds. This year's topic will treat Resistance and Outcasts in Italy, France and francophone countries. We want to take a closer look at those artists, writers, and directors who have made themselves stand apart throughout French and Italian traditions. Our goal is to discuss how various individuals and movements stand as outcasts and resist tradition or genre, as well as political, religious and cultural currents, with an approach from different time periods. Relevant themes and topics may include but are not limited to: • Outcasts with respect to one's literary circle, one's genre, one's culture • Outcasts with respect to one's country: ie. exile • Resistance to a political , religious, literary, cultural current • The so-called "failed" outcasts, an individual or a movement that did not necessarily bring a significant change in tradition but that stood apart for its resistance • Outcast characters from the novel and cinema traditions

We welcome submissions and proposals for papers in English, French and Italian. Presentations will be limited to a reading time of 20 minutes (8-10 pages). Abstracts should follow the MLA style and be between 300-500 words; they must include a cover letter indicating the title, author's name, affiliation, address, telephone number and e-mail address.